Fruit Tree Blooming Notes. 4.16.17

Gage Plum.  4.16.17

Stanley Plum.  4.16.17

LaCrescent Plum.  4.16.17

Hanska Plum.  4.16.17

Ember Plum.  4.16.17

Sweetheart Cherry.  4.16.17

Vandalay Cherry.  4.16.17

Ranier Cherry.  4.16.17

Hamese Asian Pear.  4.16.17

Hosui Asian Pear.  4.16.17

Maxie Asian Pear.  Front white flower is graft of unknown Asian Pear.  4.16.17

Multigraft Asian Pear, Branches Tied Down for Better Bearing.  4.16.17

Shinseiki Asian Pear.  4.16.17

More documentation of fruit tree blooming, for pollination matching.

By now, the earliest have dropped almost all of their petals, and can be considered done blooming.  Those are:
Ornamental Plum Crimson Pointe.
Hollywood Plum.
Sweet Treat Pluerry.
Nadia Plum Cherry Hybrid.

Methley Plum looks done or nearly so.

At peak or slightly past peak:
All of the hybrid Asian/American species plums.  These include Toka, Hanska, Ember, Lacrescent.
The unknown Asian plum is also past peak.
Shiro is past peak.

At peak bloom:
Stanley European plum
Green Gage (European) plum.
Vandalay Sweet Cherry.
Sweetheart Sweet Cherry.
Ranier Sweet Cherry.
Asian Pears including Hamese, Shinseiki, Hosui, Mishirasu, and unknown that might be Shinseiki but appears slightly different.
Maxie Hybrid pear is not quite to peak.
I have a graft of Rescue pear on the Maxie tree, which is at peak, but the original Rescue pear has barely begun blooming.

Apples are not blooming yet, but Gravenstein will be the first, with the first pink flowers now almost open.  It looks like Liberty and Pristine will be close behind, and maybe Jonared.  I don't know which of those I'm anticipating more.

Pawpaws have swelling buds, but I think it will still be a month or so.

Among the peaches, Charlotte is almost done blooming.  Same for Mary Jane.  Q-1-8 is at peak bloom.

The bottom 3 photos are my main orchard, although I have about as many other trees spread around the 2 acres in various groups.  It's nice seeing so many trees blooming, and thinking about watching the potential fruits develop.

a month.

Fruit Tree Blooming Notes. 4.4.17

Methley Plum.  4.4.17

Hollywood Plum.  4.4.17

 I'm recording the bloom dates for my fruit trees.  For future decisions, I want to know if some bloom too early, and are exposed to frost.  For pollination and multigrafts, it doesn't help if one is finished before the polleniing variety starts.

Here's where they are now.  At my place in Battleground, only the Asian plums and peaches are blooming.

Peak or past peak blooming:
Crimson Pointe ornamental plum.

Peak Blooming:
Hollywood Plum.
Methley Plum.
Sweet Treat Pluerry.
Nadia Plum Cherry Hybrid.

Early Open with a few flowers Blooming:
Shiro Plum - barely started.
LaCrescent hybrid Plum.
Charlotte Peach.  Almost peak blooming.
Mary Jane Peach.

Buds present and swelling but not open:
Hanska hybrid plum.
Ember hybrid plum.
Toka hybrid plum.

I have Hollywood on Toka.  I think I'll remove it.  Hollywood is way ahead of Toka, and is much more vigorous.  I have several other starts or grafts of Hollywood, so removing it is no loss.  Except I hate to remove a successful graft of my own doing.

Most of the cherries have swelling flower buds, as do most of the the pawpaws, Asian pears, and some apples. 

There are tiny insects moving from flower to flower in the plum and peach trees.  I imagine those are pollinating insects.  I cut sections from the unknown plum tree, and Crimson Pointe, and attached them to the other trees, as pollen sources.  I also hand pollinated a little, for Nadia and Sweet Treat.  I doubt that will have much impact, but it's not difficult to do.

Sweet Treat Pluerry.  4.4.17

Nadia Plum Cherry Hybrid.  4.4.17

Mostly, Unknown Asian Plum with multigrafts.   4.4.17

Charlotte Peach.  4.4.17

Maryanne Peach.  4.4.17

Q-1-8 Peach  4.4.17

Crimson Pointe Plum.  4.4.17

Fruit Tree Blooming Notes. 3.31.17

Methley Plum.  About 25% in bloom.  3.31.17

Nadia Plum Cherry Hybrid.  About 1/3 in bloom.  3.31.17

As of today, the Asian plums are the main fruit trees with blossom.  Hollywood and Crimson Pointe, both with myrobalan heritage, are in full, amazing bloom.  I cut a few sprigs from Crimson Pointe and placed near other blooming plums to assist pollenizing insects.  Crimson Pointe is sold as an ornamental, but I like the plums.  They are small, larger than sweet cherries, very juicy and richly flavored.  The seeds are a bit large for a small plum, so they would never sell as a fruit tree.  I'm not sure if it is self pollinated, I think so.  I think Methley also has some myrobalan DNA, and is also starting to bloom with about 25% of its flowers open now.  Nadia Plum Cherry hybrid has about 30% of its flowers open, but I'm not sure that such a young tree will behave the same way as a mature specimen.

Peaches and other plums will probably  start to open soon.  I'm seeing significant pink in the swelling buds.  Most of the Asian pears have tufts of flower buds emerging from each bud, so won't be far behind.

I don't know how well the pollinating insects will do with the rain and chilly weather.  I saw a lot of tiny bees on the Crimson Pointe tree and a few on other trees, today.

Unknown Asian Plum, possibly seed grown.  About 50% in bloom.  3.31.17

Hollywood Plum in full bloom.  3.31.17

Crimson Pointe Plum in full bloom.  3.31.17

Puttering. 3.28.15

Main orchard.  3.28.15

Jonagold with multigrafts from Fedco.  3.28.15

 Most plants are out of dormancy or nearly so.

Plums are basically finished blooming.  Unable to see if and how much fruit set has happened.  All Asian plums are done.  Toka finished just after Asian plums.  Euro plums, Green gage is almost done, and Stanley is still blooming.  Stanley is the last to bloom.

Sweet cherries are in about full bloom.

Tart cherries barely beginning to bloom.  They really are later than sweet cherries, which is good for late frost avoidance.

Too early to say anything about the apple and plum grafts.  I look at them every day.

Pawpaw flower buds are swelling, Sunflower and NC-1.  I check those every day too.

Persimmons are growing, even Yates that I planted this January.  I often read that they may take until mid or late summer to grow, their first year.  Mine are budding out at the same time as mulberries.  Nikita's Gift and Saijo both have swelling buds, almost open.

The Mishirasu Asian pear graft, that I grafted last year and was eaten off twice by deer, is growing nicely.  The tree is fenced with a deer cage now.  Other grafts on that tree - 3 are have their first flower clusters.  It's been raining during bloom.  Too early to know if there is fruit set.  I should get the first Shinseiki on the Battleground tree this year - 2 year old cleft graft - and the first Hosui, the tree that I planted in 2012 and grafted others onto it since then.

Plum whip and tongue graft.  Ember.  3.28.15

NC-1 Pawpaw flower buds, swelling.  3.28.15

 Grapes are budding out and starting to grow.

Apples nearly blooming.

Prairie fire crab apple, almost blooming.  There are a couple of flowers, so this is among the first of apples to bloom.

Mishirasu growing despite deer browsing.  3.28.15

Yates Persimmon buds swelling.  3.28.15

Fruit Tree Blooming. 3.22.15

Unknown - Green Gage? - Plum in bloom.   3.22.15

In Vancouver fruit trees that have finished blooming. 
Shiro and Hollywood Plums.   Genetic Dwarf Peaches.
Fruit trees starting to bloom.  Sweet Cherries.

In Battleground, fruit trees that have finished blooming.
Older unknown Asian Plum.
Young unknown Asian Plum
 Crimson Pointe cerasifera plum.
All peaches almost done.  Indian Free is the last.
At its peak:   Toka plum
Starting to bloom.
Asian pears.
Sweet cherries.

Most apples have visible flower buds but not near opening yet.
Pawpaw buds starting to swell.
Shan Zha.  flower buds are visible.
Tart cherries.  flower buds are visible.

Growth buds are swelling on all 3 persimmons, but not near open leaves yet.

Pourin rain for next few days.  That could impact pollination.

Battery is dead.  Will need to finish in 2 days.

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Toka Plum in Bloom.  3.22.15

Hosui Asian Pear.  3.22.15

Unknown Asian Pear.  3.22.15